In Hollywood these days,
the Circle of Life means that if a movie was a hit in the past, it’s likely
going to be remade in the future. This is especially true of Disney’s animated
classics, many of which—like “Aladdin,” “Dumbo,” “Beauty and the Beast” and
“The Jungle Book”—have been given the live-action/CGI treatment in recent
years.

The latest Disney animated
masterpiece to complete its cinematic destiny of being updated is “The Lion
King.” Directed by Jon Favreau (“Spider-Man: Far from Home”), who arguably made
the 2016 remake of “The Jungle Book” the new definitive version of that story,
the film brings to life the story of Simba—a royal lion cub exiled by his
devious Uncle Scar after thinking he killed his father, King Mufasa (voiced
once again by James Earl Jones)—like never before by blending live-action
filmmaking techniques with photoreal computer-generated imagery. The result is
a dazzling, photoreal movie that looks like it was actually filmed out on the
Africa savanna with real animals, yet somehow doesn’t quite capture the magic
of its 1994 animated predecessor.

While much of the film
stays true to the original “Lion King,” the remake isn’t just a shot-for-shot,
word-for-word remake of the animated film as some might think. Clocking in at
118 minutes, the remake is 30 minutes longer than the animated film, so Favreau
truly takes his time setting up the classic story. Nala, Simba’s childhood best
friend and future love interest, gets a slightly meatier role as the lioness
who eventually leaves Pride Rock under Scar’s rule to find help and ends up
discovering that Simba’s still alive, although her part isn’t nearly as evolved
as Jasmine’s empowering role in the recent “Aladdin” remake. The screenplay by
Jeff Nathanson (“Catch Me If You Can”) also changes Scar’s relationship with
the hyenas, as they aren’t working together at the start of the film when young
Simba and Nala venture off into the dangerous elephant graveyard. There’s no
big payoff for this change in the story, although it does make Scar’s horrific
fate (especially when it looks so real) all the more believable since the
hyenas aren’t really that close to him in this version of the film.

What’s odd is that for a movie
that runs a half-hour longer than its original version, the remake of “The Lion
King” seems hurried and choppy during its second half. While the first half of
the film unfolds beautifully and truly takes its time showcasing the world in
which the story takes place, once Simba meets up with Timon and Pumbaa after
fleeing Pride Rock, it’s almost as if Favreau is rushing towards the climax,
checking off everything fans of “The Lion King” would expect to see in the
remake without really giving the scenes much thought.

Much has been made about
the lifelike animal characters, too, and their inability to emote emotions like
their animated counterparts. While this is true in some scenarios, it doesn’t
take away too much from the story, as all of the voice actors, which include Beyoncé Knowles-Carter (“Dreamgirls”) as grown-up Nala, John Oliver (“Last Week Tonight with John Oliver”)
as Zazu, Billy Eichner (“Billy on the Street”) as Timon and Donald Glover
(“Solo: A Star Wars Story”) as grown-up Simba, do a commendable job with their
parts. Seth Rogen (“Knocked Up”) is especially great as Pumbaa, and Chiwetel
Ejiofor (“12 Years a Slave”) gives a much more menacing performance as Scar
than Jeremy Irons that fits the tone of the new film better. It’s just a shame
that in this extended iteration, Ejiofor’s Scar only gets the opportunity to
perform an abbreviated (and differently worded) version of “Be Prepared,” one
of the greatest Disney villain songs of all time.

There are a few other
disappointing story changes as well, particularly the live bait scene during
the movie’s action-packed climax (although it makes sense since the odds of
Timon finding a hula skirt in the savanna are pretty slim). That’s not to say
some of the story changes aren’t enjoyable—Timon comes up with another
hilarious number to perform instead to distract the hyenas—but when you’re
dealing with a story as beloved as “The Lion King,” there are certain scenes
and lines of dialogue fans will expect that, when they’re cut from the film, take
away from the overall experience.

Ultimately, Favreau’s “The
Lion King” doesn’t bring dishonor to the throne, but it’s not nearly as good as
the “Beauty and the Beast” or “The Jungle Book” remakes, either. The visuals
are absolutely breathtaking, the voice actors are all great, all the classic
songs by Elton John and Tim Rice are included and there are no major changes to
the story that should upset fans too much. Yet for some reason, the movie just
isn’t as engaging as the original animated musical. It’s always hard taking a
beloved film and updating it, and while there’s no doubt Favreau put his heart
and soul into the project, “The Lion King” just doesn’t improve upon its
animated predecessor like Favreau’s “The Jungle Book” did or come as close to
being as perfect as its predecessor like 2017’s “Beauty and the Beast.” While
fans of the original “Lion King” will no doubt be wowed by the film, as it
truly is something that should be experienced on the big screen (baby Simba is
so cute!), audiences can’t help but leave the theater feeling slightly
underwhelmed, too.

Heather Turk

A graduate of the University of Southern California, Heather's byline has appeared everywhere from The Los Angeles Times to Playboy.com — with her review of "The Truman Show" making the front page of The Detroit News' movie section when she was just 16 years old. Throughout her career she has interviewed some of Hollywood's biggest stars, including her three "future husbands," Jim Carrey, Will Smith and Adam Sandler. In addition to writing for Front Row Features, she covers the entertainment beat for several other outlets and is the Associate Editor of Allegiant's in-flight publication, Sunseeker.

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Heather Turk

A graduate of the University of Southern California, Heather's byline has appeared everywhere from The Los Angeles Times to Playboy.com — with her review of "The Truman Show" making the front page of The Detroit News' movie section when she was just 16 years old. Throughout her career she has interviewed some of Hollywood's biggest stars, including her three "future husbands," Jim Carrey, Will Smith and Adam Sandler. In addition to writing for Front Row Features, she covers the entertainment beat for several other outlets and is the Associate Editor of Allegiant's in-flight publication, Sunseeker. Read Full